Chapter 4
Hondo
Open your eyes. You were born for this shit, son.
I watched Otto speak to a few of the young niggas while my mind was elsewhere.
I had a new distraction, one that made my life much more dangerous.
Thinking about her when my mind should have been on business and what was in front of me was a bad idea.
It wasn’t like I didn’t know the type of power Nic had over me, because I did and that was why I stayed away from her for so long.
It had been a week since I dropped her off, and besides updates from my men and the one call she made to tell me to stop having her followed, we hadn’t spoken.
Her call was more of a tantrum, telling me she wasn’t a child and didn’t need a babysitter, to which I replied she wasn’t being babysat but instead protected.
She didn’t like that shit at all and had hung up on me.
I meant to go by her place that night and smooth things out, but time got away from me, and before I knew it, the wee hours of the morning had shown.
“Yo, did you hear anything I said, Hon?” My brother’s voice broke through my thoughts.
“Nah, I didn’t. Don’t matter though, as long as they did.” I cut my eyes in his direction, then back at my phone. The screen had gone dark since it last had my attention.
“It’s starting, huh?” he asked with a smirk indented in his features.
“What’s starting?”
“Your inability to think about anything but the woman you’re set to marry. I haven’t seen Patience in ages. She still wears those thick ass glasses?”
I cut my eyes at him. “Nah, she’s fucking beautiful.”
He laughed. “Can’t take your word for it, because even when she wore those thick ass glasses, you thought she was beautiful. Gotta see for myself.”
“You ’ont have to see shit for yours—” I started, but my phone alerted me to a notification. I glanced down, a text message from Shawn. He was one of the main guards in charge of Nic’s safety.
Shawn: She just stepped out with a friend. We followed them to Lordes Steak. You want us to stay outside?
My blood boiled at the mention of a friend because Nic didn’t have no fucking friends. I wasn’t about to tip my hand and ask gender, I’d just see for myself.
Me: Yeah. I’m on my way.
I was on my feet in seconds. “I need to go see about something.”
“I’ll ride with you. You do realize I told Mama both of us were coming through. I mean unless you have some other shi—”
“Doesn’t matter.” I descended the stairs of the pool hall, headed to the car I knew was waiting on me.
“What the fuck just happened between now and the last five minutes?” he asked, sensing the change in my mood.
Her! “Nothing.” I responded, as soon as the car door was opened for me to get in.
Once we were in the truck I sat back, holding my phone out to click Shawn’s contact. I then mashed it to my ear, listening to it ring for all of five seconds before he picked up.
“Yeah, boss.”
“I’m on my way. Have that motherfucker shutting down for the evening when I pull up.”
“Loud?”
“Nah, discreet.”
“Bet.”
He hung up and I dropped my phone into my lap, loosening my cufflinks. I told Nic I wasn’t patient at all, but I’d try to be. This shit right here had me saying fuck that patient shit.
“Do I even wanna know what the hell I just jumped in the car for?”
I didn’t respond, instead watching the city lights as my driver headed toward the restaurant.
“Fuck it, let me tell Mommy we’re about to be late.”
I shook my head. “We’ll be on time. Tell her to have Lucinda set another table setting though.” No sooner than I said that did we pull up in front of the restaurant.
“Oh okay. I’ma stay in the car.” He was still taken aback, but I didn’t have the time nor the energy to explain anything to him. I was already stepping out of the car, moving toward the front door where Shawn stood with his hands linked across his abdomen.
“Last booth at the end.”
I nodded and he opened the door for me to enter.
The whole walk I told myself I was keeping my cool, forcing my temper at bay.
However, the closer I got the more that shit seemed unattainable.
I felt like she needed to see how south things could go for playing with me.
Even if she wasn’t necessarily playing with me.
After all, she was about to be my wife. Why shouldn’t she know all sides of me?
I spotted her by the back of her head after watching one of my men escort the couple seated behind them out of the restaurant.
“Yeah, chef’s apology. Tonight is a bad night,” he said to the elderly white couple who didn’t understand why they were leaving their meals.
Oh fucking well.
The nigga she was sitting across from spoke in a hushed tone, pissed about something. “I cannot believe this, I cannot believe you would do this to me. My mother said you were a whore,” he muttered.
“You fucking stomped on my hea—” he started, but the moment I stopped at their table, he paused and stared at me. He was confused as to why I was standing at their table and she was looking down at the menu.
“I hear you. You have every right to be pissed, but what you won’t do is ca—” She looked up at him, then followed his eyesight to me. We locked eyes.
I couldn’t tell if she was shocked or angry, either way that exact look made my dick hard. I leaned down and kissed the side of her face before I unbuttoned the buttons on my suit jacket and took a seat next to her.
“You look beautiful, Nic.” I leaned into her space, inhaling her scent before I looked at him.
“And who the fuck is this?” he asked, obviously angry at something that wasn’t my presence.
“Hondo, what are you doing here?” She didn’t respond to ol’ boy but turned her face in my direction, looking at me.
“The better question is what you’re doing here. Ain’t heard from you since your tantrum the other day, then I hear you’re out to eat with a square, not wearing your ring?”
She immediately looked down at her hand before her eyes found mine again. “You’re reading too much into this, we’re just having din—” she started, but I shook my head.
“I told you that I didn't have any patience and that was a lie. The only patience I have is you. So.”
I held my hand out toward Steeve, my main security. He immediately filled it with a gun that I set on the table in front of her on top of the fucking menu.
“Put your ring back on or I promise you I will end this nigga’s miserable existence right fucking here.
” I spoke so calmly I heard her swallow before she reached into her purse and pulled out her engagement ring seconds later.
She slid that motherfucker back on her finger so fast I just knew it hurt.
“One more thing, Nic.” I held up my index finger.
She looked at ol’ boy fuming across from her then toward me.
“You in love with this nigga or something?”
She shook her head. “Contrary to whatever you currently believe, I only came here to let him down easy, seeing as how we are engaged. But of course, easy doesn’t happen when you throw tantrums like a baby and call me a whore.”
“I heard that part. He’s about to apologize and congratulate us on our nuptials. Ain’t that right, bitch ass nigga.” I threw my arm over her shoulder.
Ol’ boy looked like he didn’t know what to say, like he was trying to wake himself up from a fucked-up dream. Too bad this wasn’t a dream… well, for him.
“I…I’m sorry. I didn’t mean what I said; I was just angry.” He sounded like a straight bitch and looked from her to me before his last statement. “Also, I’m happy for you and congratulations on your engagement.”
I nodded, and before another word could be uttered, Shawn’s fist connected with his face. I heard his teeth separate from his gums.
His hand immediately went to his mouth, trying to hold in what he could.
“That was for the disrespect. Now get the fuck up out of here and forget you know her. I mean, she’s worth it to me, but not for you to be losing your life over, especially because she was out of your league from the beginning.”
Ol’ boy nearly fell trying to slide out of the booth to leave. He couldn’t get away from me fast enough and that shit was absolutely hilarious.
She spoke, breaking the silence between us.
“You didn’t have to do that. I was letting him down easily.”
“Before or after he disrespected you, Nic? Don’t no nigga who walks this earth get away with disrespecting shit about you.”
She shook her head. “I could’ve handled it.”
“I’m sure you could’ve, but you didn’t have to.”
She didn’t speak, instead picking up the wine glass and putting it to her lips before she glanced around the restaurant. It was empty as fuck. Just me, her and Shawn in this motherfucker. “I’m guessing this was your doing too?” she said, referring to the empty space.
“Yup. You forced my hand.”
She shook her head. “How did I force your hand? I came out to eat, to have a conversat—”
“You could’ve DMed that nigga. Fuck you gotta have dinner with him for? The fuck you didn’t have your ring on for?”
She sighed. “I’m not heartless. Just like I told him face to face I was giving us another chance, I wanted to tell him face to face that I was engaged. And for the record, I’m grown, and also not about to be cooped up in some house or apartment while you’re God knows where doing whatever.”
I read between the lines and nodded. “Aight, Nic.” I was still fuming that she wasn’t wearing her ring, but I could see she wasn’t gonna get that point tonight.
“That’s it? Just aight Nic?”
“Let’s go,” were the next words from my lips as I was now standing.
“I didn’t come here with you.”
“But you are leaving with me. Can’t you see these people’s establishment is closed. Plus, you and this shit is about to get me cursed out.” I glanced down at my watch and saw the time. My mama was gonna kill my ass.